"This is your college young ladies. Make the most of it."; "The office staff and the teaching staff are here to help you young ladies. Feel free to approach us for help anytime you need."
Now that is something that I get to hear from our honorable principal almost every time during our thrice a week assembly. When I joined ------ College in 2009, I was, like the 300 odd girls who joined along with me, overwhelmed on hearing these words. We were never spoken to in this fashion. For all of us, our schools days were definitely the golden period of our life but it was also like a prison. We were reminded every single day that the school did not belong to us- it belonged to the management. Initially I felt it was the personal feeling of my mind that has been chained for the past fourteen years. Thankfully, I was proved wrong. A glance into the eyes of the other girls in the hall and a soft yet distinguishable breeze of murmurs cleared the fact that we were all thinking and feeling the same thing.
Two weeks in this reputable institution of Kolkata, revealed to us our own folly. We got a taste of the hypocritical 'outside' world that our school teachers talked so much about during the last few days of our school life.
A year and a half in this institution actually made me think, "Am I along with my college mates the lone sufferer of this double standard? Or is it the same story everywhere?" Gradually, the truth revealed its own self. In every college or any educational institute, for that matter, across the city (can't talk about institutes outside Kolkata for I haven't been to any of them, neither do I have any idea about the way they function) there are hordes of Virus, hordes of Veeru Sahastrabuddhe who can go to any length to impose their knowledge on the young generation without giving them a chance to express their views. The news, books, paintings, music, etc. are so vocal against female oppression and other social evils that hopefully in a decade or so, the society will see a new dawn. But amidst this din, how many of us can actually listen to the crawl of a new social evil, namely student oppression?
You are being taught a sonnet by Shakespeare. The Bard was a genius with his couplets. Each couplet has several readings, several interpretations. With every new research there is a new reading found. If by mistake, and mark my words, I say by mistake you have read about the results of the new researches and wish to share them with your class you are immediately labelled as 'unreasonable' or 'over reacher'. Wonderful, I must say! This suppression is simultaneously followed by a rhetorical lecture about how learning has no age limit.
A student is more interested in the psychological aspect of a text rather than its writing style, use of metaphors, symbols and so on and so forth. Unfortunately, this student does not belong to the Psychology honours department but rather the English honours department. This student through her own reading and research has found something interesting about the text and wishes to show it to her Professor. Once she has showed it, she receives a comment, "It is good but you are a fool to waste your time like this. Leave the psychological aspect of the text to Psycho honours students. You could have used your time to find some literary interpretations darling!" My question is, "Why? Why can't an English honours student be interested in the psychological aspect of literature? Why can't a History honours student be interested in trade, commerce and marketing?" Just because someone has taken Geography as the main subject in their degree course mean that they are not allowed to be interested in History, Film Studies or Music? Why can't they read and gather knowledge about a subject outside their curriculum? Why is it considered a waste of time? If this is the truth, then why are we taught from an early age that knowledge knows no bounds?
Another interesting thing that has caught my eye in this year and half is how wonderfully well your teachers and your parents know about you than your own self. I would like to explain this through a short experience that I had. This particular chap, almost of my age or maybe younger than me, is an expert in the genre of rock music. He was a walking talking encyclopedia of rock music and wanted to take up music in his degree course. But as luck would have it he was forced to pursue C.A. The ground for this compulsion, "A degree in C.A. guarantees you big money and not a job in a small school as a music teacher." Last heard the chap had failed his C.P.T and was gearing up for a second try. Why is money everything for our parents? What about our happiness and our satisfaction?
I am not quite interested in law or the like, but last checked we students live in a democratic country which gives us the fundamental right to life, right to choose our own profession and right to education. Now all these rights stand violated. Our professions are chosen by our teachers and parents. Our educational interests are governed by our professors. Our life is less of a life and more like the programmed activities of robots. At the conclusion I just have one last question on behalf of all students- are we, by any chance, allowed to use our fundamental right to constitutional remedies?
